Cockfighting raid: 67 arrests, 52 roosters taken

CHATAWA, Miss. (AP) — Pike County Sheriff’s Office says 67 people were arrested and 52 roosters confiscated when a cock fight was raided in Chatawa.

Sheriff Mark Shepherd tells WLBT that about 35 officers finished an 18-month investigation of a cockfighting ring with the raid Sunday afternoon.

He says the only people charged with felonies were 66-year-old Clarence Alex Bunch of Osyka and 24-year-old Mark Tulagan of Baker, La. Shepherd says Bunch is charged with racketeering and Tulagan with possessing crystal meth.

He says deputies confiscated $39,000 cash. He says eight birds were kept as evidence and the rest were euthanized.